Mac Gargan
MacDonald "Mac" Gargan is a fictional character that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. During his career as a villain of Spider-Man's, he originally appeared as the most well-known incarnation of Scorpion, bonded with the symbiote to become the third incarnation of Venom, and takes a serum to control the symbiote to pose as the third incarnation of Spider-Man. Publication history The character was created by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko. Gargan first appeared in The Amazing Spider-Man #19 (1964) and first appeared as the "Scorpion" in Amazing Spider-Man #20 (July, 1964). Years later, he became the third "Venom" in Marvel Knights: Spider-Man #10 (2005) and the third "Spider-Man" in Dark Avengers #1 (2009). He appeared as a regular character in the Dark Avengers series from issue #1 (March 2009) through issue #16 (June 2010). Mac Gargan appeared in the character's first own 4-issue limited series, Dark Reign: Sinister Spider-Man. The comic was released in June 2009 and was written by Brian Reed, with art by Chris Bachalo.THE OSBORN SUPREMACY: Venom, Comic Book Resources, April 24, 2009 Writer Dan Slott revealed that Mac Gargan would return as the original Scorpion, in an upcoming arc of The Amazing Spider-Man. Fictional character biography Scorpion .]] Mac Gargan was a private investigator initially hired by J. Jonah Jameson to find out how Peter Parker is able to obtain incredible pictures of Spider-Man.Amazing Spider-Man #19 Gargan's efforts set off Peter's spider-sense and the teen was able to easily evade the detective. Jameson then decided to hire Gargan as the subject of a barely tested process that would endow him with the useful characteristics of a particular animal with the help of Dr. Farley Stillwell. In this case, a scorpion was the base for the purposes of creating a powerful agent capable of defeating Spider-Man. The Scorpion proved to be more than a match for the wall-crawler, defeating him twice, but the mutagenic treatment seriously affected Gargan's mind, driving him insane. He promptly turned on his benefactor but Spider-Man intervened, and managed to finally defeat the Scorpion in their third battle. Jameson was struck with the irony that he was saved by the man he tried to destroy from the thing he created to destroy him.Amazing Spider-Man #20 Since then, the Scorpion became a professional criminal and would return to indulge in his deadly vendetta against Spider-Man and Jameson, only to be defeated again.Amazing Spider-Man #29 He was later hired by a spy ring to follow S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Sharon Carter, but was defeated by Captain America.Captain America #122 Scorpion was acquired by Mr. Kline, who created android duplicates of the Scorpion and Mr. Hyde to dispatch against Daredevil.Daredevil #82 The real Scorpion and Mr. Hyde then launched a campaign of terror against S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, but were defeated by Captain America and the Falcon.Captain America #151-152 After being released from prison for good behavior, the Scorpion resumes his criminal career and encounters and defeats Spider-Man again. After realizing that the wall-crawler survived the encounter, he receives help from the Jackal who gives him Spider-Man's location. The Scorpion arrives at a hospital room finding Peter Parker and his Aunt May. Not realizing that he had Spider-Man right there, he threatens May and demands to know where Spider-Man is and, after she faints, Scorpion rampages through the hospital. A furious Spider-Man beats the Scorpion and forces him to apologize to May.Amazing Spider-Man #145-146 The Scorpion, through the course of his career, acquired a few items: a new costume, and several new tails: one that spurted acid, another that spurted tear gas, and one that can deliver electric blasts from the stinger. He also fought Ms. Marvel after a botched revenge attempt against Jameson; the Scorpion became more psychotic than usual after his battle with Ms. Marvel, resulting in his being dumped in acid.Ms. Marvel #1-2 In the sewers, his sanity deteriorating, Scorpion came to believe that his costume couldn't come off. However, after a quick encounter, Spider-Man proved to him that his belief of being a monster was in his mind.Spectacular Spider-Man #21 He formed an extortion racket to sabotage the Daily Bugle, but was thwarted by Spider-Man and Captain America.Marvel Team-Up #106 He was freed from prison by agents of Egghead, who wanted him as a member of the third Masters of Evil alongside Whirlwind and Moonstone. The team fought the Avengers but were defeated.Avengers #222 Scorpion would make another attempt to ruin Jameson's life by kidnapping his bride Marla Madison on their wedding day but she is rescued by Spider-Man.Amazing Spider-Man Annual #18 Jonah does appreciate the irony from his relationship with the Scorpion and eventually decided to publicly confess to his role in creating the supervillain when the original Hobgoblin tried to use that secret to blackmail him.Amazing Spider-Man #251 Despite his encounters with other foes, Scorpion has always had a special hatred for Spider-Man and Jameson, which extended when he attempted becoming a mercenary for Justin Hammer, who had the Scorpion's battlesuit modified. Namely, he ruined his prospects on his first mission, to capture a war hero, when he could not resist creating a hostage situation simply to bring Jameson to him for revenge. In reaction, Hammer sent Blacklash and Rhino to subdue Gargan and confiscate the tail enhancement equipment for abrogating his contract.Amazing Spider-Man #318-319 During the Acts of Vengeance, he tried to enter Canada to avoid the Super Power Registration Act. The Tinkerer met him at the airport and provided him with a modified scorpion tail for his costume. He, Asp, Nekra, and Owl (who were under the control of Llan the Sorcerer) were repelled by Alpha Flight and Gamma Flight.Alpha Flight #79-80 He was then hired by the Chameleon to kill a de-powered Spider-Man. He was defeated by the Black Cat.Amazing Spider-Man #342-343 At one point, the Scorpion's constant defeats at the hands of Spider-Man drove him to depression. He wandered the sewers, his mind becoming clearer than it had been since his transformation and decided to quit being the Scorpion. He encountered a depressed and crisis-ridden Spider-Man. Ignoring Gargan's plea that he had changed, the wall-crawler beat him savagely.Spectacular Spider-Man #215-216 In his next appearance, Gargan was back to being psychopathic. He battled and was defeated by Spider-Man's clone Ben Reilly.Spider-Man Unlimited #13 Scorpion temporarily worked for Roxxon and helped them in their phony "Rehabilitation Therapy". Roxxon updated the Scorpion's powers and costume and promised he would get back at his enemies. Spider-Man managed to convince Scorpion that he was only being used as Jameson had once before. Scorpion then turned on Roxxon and was then defeated by the web-slinger.Spider-Man Unlimited #22 Gargan reappeared during the aftermath of the Secret War that had been organized by Nick Fury against Latveria. He was among the supervillains who had been supplied with enhanced technology by Latverian dictator Lucia von Bardas and sent to attack the heroes who had been involved in Fury's Secret War. The villains' technologies were then hijacked by von Bardas, supplying her with power, potentially at the cost of the villains' lives, but the assembled heroes defeated von Bardas and apprehended Scorpion and the others. Venom .]] Later on through circumstances yet to be revealed, Norman Osborn reveals Spider-Man's true identity to Gargan and gives him orders to kidnap Peter's Aunt May should Osborn ever be captured and imprisoned. When Spider-Man defeats Osborn, he is imprisoned and Gargan carries out Osborn's orders in kidnapping Aunt May. Gargan eventually summons Peter and tells him the only way he can see his aunt again is to break Norman out of jail. Shortly thereafter, the Venom symbiote approaches Gargan,Marvel Knights: Spider-Man #9 offering him new abilities, and Gargan becomes bonded with the creature. This would later give him an extra edge as part of Norman Osborn's Sinister Twelve.Marvel Knights: Spider-Man #10 Even with these additional powers he is still swiftly defeated by Spider-Man, as the Avengers deal with the rest of the Twelve.Marvel Knights: Spider-Man #11 So far he remains bonded with the symbiote. Though incarcerated,Marvel Knights: Spider-Man #12 Gargan is unfazed, as with his new powers came the respect of becoming an "A-list" villain. Alongside Spider-Man and other villains and heroes, Venom is kidnapped by other-dimensional forces. He succeeds in killing Spider-Man, who is really the original Space Phantom in disguise.Beyond! #1 For his crimes, the Inhumans matriarch Medusa orders his execution and almost carries it out herself. Later, he tries to kill the other participants for the "Beyonder's" wish fulfillment prize for the winner''Beyond!'' #2 but fails and is returned to Earth alongside the rest of the group.Beyond! #6 Thunderbolts Gargan later becomes a member of a sub-group of the Thunderbolts,Civil War #4 which has been drafted by the Avengers to hunt down the members of the fugitive Secret Avengers and is currently run by the Commission for Superhuman Activities.Civil War: Choosing Sides #1 It is then revealed that he has been outfitted with electrical implants by the government to keep the symbiote in check.Heroes for Hire vol. 2 #2 As a Thunderbolt, he is seen as a hero by the general public and has his own action figures.Thunderbolts #110 Gargan displays his new raw power as Venom in a battle with Jack Flag, after pummeling Flag for a bit, the hero manages to stab Gargan, who is protected by his symbiote. Gargan becomes enraged and ferociously man-handles Flag, and is about to eat him when his electrical implants kick in and temporarily subdue him, allowing Flag to live.Thunderbolts #111 Gargan expresses fear of the control the symbiote possesses over him, yet he has become addicted to the raw unearthly power it brings to him, and cannot begin to imagine life without it, similarly to a drug addict.Thunderbolts #112 An attack from Steel Spider and Sepulchre makes him lose control again, briefly becoming a huge monster once more, while Moonstone is incapacitated and thus cannot coordinate control of his electrical implants.Thunderbolts #114 Afterwards, however, he returns to a normal form with no ill effects. He also bites off and devours Steel Spider's arm during a fight.Thunderbolts #115 Gargan is later ordered by Norman Osborn to hunt down Namor. After shooting him with a Thunderbolts-supplied weapon, Gargan disables Namor by ripping off his feet-wings. However, the Sub-Mariner manages to render Gargan unconscious and then rips out the symbiote's tongue,Sub-Mariner 2007 limited-series although the symbiote easily makes a new one. Gargan begins to hallucinate that the symbiote is speaking to him, telling him to "feed (it)". He later attacks and devours a guard and declares that "the only way out of Thunderbolts Mountain is when I decide to let you die".Thunderbolts #118 It is later revealed that the psychic criminal Bluestreak is controlling Gargan's actions, although it is uncertain whether the symbiote was actually speaking to him.Thunderbolts #119 Venom goes up against the Swordsman, who stabs Gargan through the chest, using his powers to force the symbiote away from his sword. Gargan is wounded, but lives.Thunderbolts #120 After healing, he retains his monstrous form, rarely returning to his usual size. New Ways to Die Gargan reappears during the "New Ways to Die" arc of The Amazing Spider-Man, no longer possessing the knowledge of Spider-Man's secret identity. Gargan and the Thunderbolts are called back to New York to capture Spider-Man. While on a search for the wall-crawler, Gargan's symbiote senses a former host at the F.E.A.S.T center. Gargan suspects that it's Spider-Man and searches the place only to find Eddie Brock. The Venom symbiote attempts to leave Gargan to re-bond with Brock, much to Gargan's (and Brock's) dismay. However, upon making contact with Brock, his skin is shown to be caustic to his former symbiote, and as a white substance seeps out of his pores covering his body, Brock becomes Anti-Venom and battles Gargan. With some help from Spider-Man, Anti-Venom subdues Venom and nearly destroys the symbiote. Norman Osborn uses a sample of Anti-Venom's DNA from Mac Gargan and creates a poisonous counter to its healing powers by combining the sample with the immune system of Freak. Mac Gargan is injected with the "cure" and is given a new Scorpion battlesuit, which contains the venom, until the symbiote can recover.Amazing Spider-Man #572 Anti-Venom tracks down Gargan at Oscorp. After a grueling battle "Ven-orpion" injects the toxin into Anti-Venom and seemly kills the suit. He then attempts to kill Brock but the symbiote tries holding him back, still feeling love for its former host. The symbiote gains its strength and breaks though the Scorpion suit. Gargan gives up but promises that he will get past this problem and will someday finish Brock.Amazing Spider-Man #573 Secret Invasion Gargan was seen being thrown from Thunderbolt Mountain by Captain Marvel.Secret Invasion #3 Gargan was later seen with the other Thunderbolts in Washington. The Skrulls attempt to trick him into killing normal humans to find out which of them are Skrulls.Thunderbolts #123 Osborn attempted to prevent the symbiote from killing anyone by threatening to kill Mac Gargan and promising to help satisfy his "urges" later, only for Gargan to reveal that the threat he appeared to pose to civilians was a ruse in order to draw out a disguised Skrull. Venom played a huge part in fighting the Skrulls. He was seen slashing and eating the Skrulls all at once.Thunderbolts #124 He soon joins the Thunderbolts and the remaining heroes for the final battle against the Skrulls. During the battle, he was a force to be reckoned with.Secret Invasion #7 Venom, along with most of the Thunderbolts team, attempts to kill partner Songbird on the orders of Osborn. Facing Venom, Songbird was defeated and almost eaten by Venom, but escaped with help from the Swordsman.Thunderbolts #127 "Dark Reign" .]] Norman Osborn forms his Dark Avengers, providing new identities to some of his former Thunderbolts. After feeding a Skrull to a hungry Venom that has become more bestial than human, Osborn gives him a medication that resets the symbiote to the size it was when it possessed Spider-Man originally. However, Gargan can transform into his Venom form at will. Norman introduces Gargan and the symbiote as the Amazing Spider-Man in his new Avengers.Dark Avengers #1 During their first mission against Morgana le Fay, Morgana transforms "Venom-Spidey" into a giant, demonic monster who then tries to eat Ares.Dark Avengers #2 Venom later coughs up Ares, however Morgana's magic affects Venom, causing him to lose and gain control of himself randomly.Dark Avengers #3 After Morgana is defeated in the past by Iron Patriot and Doctor Doom, Mac returned to his "Spider-Man" form with only a slight headache. Hawkeye promised to kill Mac one day for trying to eat him while he was under Morgana's control.Dark Avengers #4 Once they arrive home, he is seen arguing with Hawkeye.Dark Avengers #5 Later, attempting to find out Norman Osborn's plans for his son Harry, the real Spider-Man, with the aid of the Invisible Woman, manages to capture Gargan by using a sonic generator and takes his place to infiltrate the Dark Avengers. Gargan is thrown into the Negative Zone,Amazing Spider-Man #596 but is later seen back with the Dark Avengers. Against Osborn's wishes, Gargan is seen heading out into the city to "fight crime" solo. At one point, he is seen defeating a bank robber called General Wolfram. After making out with two girls at once and getting cheered by a large crowd, he takes the robber to an abandoned roof top and consumes his arm. He then takes the money Wolfram stole and swings away. Gargan is then seen at a strip club with the money and discovers his new favorite stripper. After getting reprimanded by Norman Osborn for eating Wolfram's arm, Gargan kills the stripper and places her dead body in J. Jonah Jameson's bed while he is gone in an attempt to frame him for her murder. At the same time, Redeemer visits the injured General Wolfram and recruits him alongside other villains who have had limbs bitten off by Gargan (namely Dementoid, Doctor Everything, Eleven, and Hippo) in a plan to take down "Spider-Man" (who is believed to be the root of their problem).Dark Reign: Sinister Spider-Man #1 In another attempt to antagonize Jameson, Gargan instigates a turf war between two rival street gangs, hoping to wear Jameson down through stress and exhaustion from continuously putting out stories to cover the crime wave. At the same time, the Redeemer arms his group with cybernetic limbs to defeat Spider-Man. J. Jonah Jameson goes to Osborn for help and is given Spider-Man to help solve the city's gang problem.Dark Reign: Sinister Spider-Man #2 However, Gargan continues to instigate the gang war and aggravate Jameson in person. A bomb threat is placed by Redeemer to lure Spider-Man into an intervention, though Gargan instead devours Hippo and Eleven, badly injures Dementoid, and beats Doctor Everything into submission before turning him over to the police. He then eats Redeemer's limbs. With Redeemer, Wolfram, and Dementoid the only ones still remaining of the group (albeit hospitalized), Redeemer sends photos of Gargan's actions to Jameson in an attempt to expose him as a cannibalistic psychopath to the world.Dark Reign: Sinister Spider-Man #3 Jameson first goes to Osborn, who decides to cut Gargan loose by sending Bullseye and Daken (in their old costumes) to kill him. At the Big Apple Festival, the two attack him, with Dementoid, General Wolfram, and both gangs involved in the turf war entering the fray to try to kill Spider-Man. Gargan ends up defeating all of them, and J. Jonah Jameson shoots a gun in the air to stop the fight. As a result, everyone credits Jameson and Spider-Man with successfully working together to stop criminals and save the festival. Gargan later returns to Avengers Tower, where he is visited by Norman Osborn. Osborn informs him that Bullseye and Daken will get over being hurt, but warns Gargan that if he goes out of control again, he will suit up as the Iron Patriot and take care of him personally.Dark Reign: Sinister Spider-Man #4 During the opening chapter of Utopia, the Dark Avengers are sent into San Francisco to quell the mutant riots and battle any X-Men they can find. Tension is shown to exist between the Avengers and Osborn's own Dark X-Men. When Namor and Emma Frost are revealed to be double agents on Cyclops' side and defect with Cloak and Dagger, an irate Osborn gathers the Dark Avengers and the remaining Dark X-Men, Gargan included, ordering them to bring him Namor's head and Emma Frost's heart and to make sure that Cyclops sees them do it.Dark Avengers #8 The Dark Avengers and Dark X-Men attack Utopia and battle the X-Men, with Venom facing off against Colossus. However, due to the sheer number of X-Men, Osborn is forced to retreat when informed that the only way to win would be to kill all the mutants on the island, an option which is not politically viable.Dark Avengers/Uncanny X-Men: Exodus Gargan later begins to show signs that his medications are making him emotionally unstable. On a mission with the Dark Avengers, Osborn takes Gargan off the case when he notices Gargan's outbursts.Dark Avengers #10 Molecule Man turns Gargan and his symbiote into an inert pile of goo.Dark Avengers #11 He is later restored by the Sentry. "Siege" During the "Siege" storyline, Mac Gargan is with the Dark Avengers when Norman Osborn makes plans to invade Asgard. Mac Gargan and the rest of the Avengers protest. For fighting alongside the Initiative, Osborn promises to give the team their freedom from servitude. As a result, Gargan is among the mass of soldiers to launch an attack on Asgard following Loki's setup. He and the rest of the Avengers manage to overwhelm Thor.Siege #1 While fighting Ms. Marvel and Spider-Man after they arrive, Gargan is forcefully removed from the Venom symbiote, which takes over Ms. Marvel until Spider-Man defeats it.Siege: Spider-Man #1 He along with the other Dark Avengers were arrested after Norman Osborn fell from power.Siege #4 Return as Scorpion During the "Big Time" storyline, Mac Gargan is seen at the Raft superprison, having been separated from the Venom symbiote. As for Gargan, the symbiote's removal was causing medical problems due to the side effects from his original genetic mutation, and Alistair Smythe broke him out of the Raft.The Amazing Spider-Man #650 Gargan was then fitted with a new Scorpion suit by Smythe, which included a life-support system to stabilize Gargan's condition. Smythe convinced Gargan to join him in his plan for revenge on J. Jonah Jameson.The Amazing Spider-Man #651 Scorpion joins Alistair Smythe, a new villain named Fly-Girl, and some unnamed cyborg minions (each wanting revenge on Jameson) in attacking the launch site of John Jameson's latest space mission, where they sabotage the launch and hold John Jameson for ransom.The Amazing Spider-Man #652 During the Ends of the Earth storyline, Scorpion is seen guarding one of Doctor Octopus' facilities. Titanium Man enters it and ends up fighting Scorpion. Titanium Man is defeated by Scorpion despite his best efforts.The Amazing Spider-Man: Ends of the Earth #1 During the Dying Wish storyline, Scorpion hears the call-to-arms from Spider-Man (while he was trapped in Doctor Octopus' dying body) to save him and apprehend Doctor Octopus (who has occupied Spider-Man's body) in order to save his loved ones from Doctor Octopus' final sinister scheme.The Amazing Spider-Man #699 Scorpion and Hydro-Man accompany Peter Parker in Doctor Octopus' body to Stark Industries to look for Tony Stark only to end up in a trap set by Doctor Octopus in Spider-Man's body. When finding a safe area containing Spider-Man's friends and relatives, Scorpion plans to have his final revenge on J. Jonah Jameson. Upon accessing the memories of Spider-Man loving Aunt May - and the times Scorpion threatened her - Doctor Octopus in Spider-Man's body retaliates by punching Scorpion so hard in the jaw (the only unprotected part of his body) that it breaks off from his head.The Amazing Spider-Man #700 Scorpion was later seen in the Raft's infirmary with Boomerang and Vulture. Alistair Smythe's mini Spider-Slayers heal and enhance them, and Smythe gives them an offer to kill Spider-Man.The Superior Spider-Man #11 While Boomerang fights Spider-Man, Scorpion is convinced by Alistair Smythe to go after Mayor J. Jonah Jameson.The Superior Spider-Man #12 Personality Before he assumed the identity of the Scorpion, Mac Gargan was a skilled, if somewhat greedy and unscrupulous private investigator, who admitted that he'd go through anything "just so long as the pay is good!" His greed still motivated him as a super-villain, albeit in a twisted way: while awaiting an official "offer" from the Thunderbolts, Gargan squeezed his agent for financial details on a proposed book, TV and movie deal ("How many back points? And residuals? Fantastic. That foreign and domestic?"), demanded certain talent for the writing (including the screenwriting brother of the comic's writer) and, finally, Gargan killed six "capekiller" S.H.I.E.L.D. agents sent to bring him in - because while he intended to cooperate, his agent had told him that the rights to his life story would be "worth a little more" if Gargan "goosed up the body count" before joining the Thunderbolts.Civil War: Choosing Sides #1 (Dec. 2006) However, as he is emotionally disturbed as a result of the procedure in which he acquired his powers, Mac retains little of his former rationality. He is typically easily outsmarted by Spider-Man and is not very good at cooperating with other supervillains or following instructions as Justin Hammer learned. His most prominent weakness is his explosive temper and irrational hatred toward J. Jonah Jameson, to the point where he has been known to ignore the orders of whomever he is working for, in order to attack the Daily Bugle's publisher. None of this has changed with his bonding to the Venom symbiote, or with his new career serving under Norman Osborn with the Thunderbolts or the Dark Avengers: In fact, the symbiote seems to have only made him even more irrational, and his new career as a "hero" has done nothing to curtail his lingering hatred of Jameson. He nearly blew his cover as Spider-Man when he started a drug war and photographs of him engaging in cannibalism wound up in J. Jonah Jameson's hands, putting his employer Norman Osborn's plans and the "heroic" status of his entire Dark Avengers team in jeopardy, just to pursue vengeance against Jameson (now the mayor of New York) yet again. His ill-conceived and poorly thought-out plan failed, and he was forced to publicly make peace with Jameson in his Spider-Man guise, greatly embarrassing him, though he secretly fantasized about killing Jameson the whole while they were shaking hands. The years of being outsmarted and beaten, despite his physical superiority over Spider-Man, complement the similar hatred possessed by the symbiote, and has allowed it to almost completely control Gargan. Unlike the other Venoms, Mac very seldom refers to himself as "We" instead of "I". Gargan has even engaged in cannibalism as Venom, severing and devouring the arm of the still-living Steel Spider. After getting "the taste of flesh", he is seen displaying even more signs of cannibalism such as eating Skrulls, consuming the bones of Swarm, devouring Eleven and the limbs of criminals, and trying to eat Ares. When the symbiote is dormant in his body he has expressed nausea and fear of the organism.Thunderbolts #112 Unlike Eddie Brock, any inhibitions Gargan had about harming innocent bystanders has been eliminated with his bonding to the symbiote, most likely because he had such little regard for others to begin with. Gargan's previous identity hasn't been completely degraded. His symbiote once sprouted a scorpion tail, although he hasn't had it since. Also when he learned there was a new hero calling herself the Scorpion, Gargan-Venom attacked her to protect his trademark while it still lasted. Also, for a brief time, Gargan wore a new Scorpion suit while the symbiote regenerated after Anti-Venom's attack, although initially he was hesitant about wearing it alongside the symbiote. Powers and abilities As Scorpion Mac Gargan, as the Scorpion, was given superhuman powers through chemical and radiological treatments, which produced mutagenic effects. He has superhuman strength, speed, agility, reflexes, stamina, and durability, and also can scale walls (he also punches holes in walls as a way to climb). He also has an exceptionally strong grip, reminiscent of a real scorpion's pincers. He wears a full-body battlesuit composed of two layers of light steel mesh separated by a thin layer of insulated rubber. In addition to his superhuman physique, he was traditionally armed with a cybernetically-controlled, seven-foot mechanical tail, with a tool steel articulated framework which can whip at 90 miles per hour. The tail has in the past been equipped with projectile weapons, usually an electric generator, although it has also been equipped with a spike at its tip, which can squirt an acidic spray, and a low-density plasma energy projector. The Scorpion can use his tail as an extra leg, or he can coil it behind him to spring himself a distance of at least 30 feet. The Scorpion is substantially stronger and more durable than Spider-Man, though is a much less skilled hand-to-hand combatant. As Venom With the Venom symbiote, Mac Gargan retains his superhuman abilities, some of which have increased substantially beyond the original levels. The costume can even emulate the tail of Gargan's scorpion costume. It can also be used as a fifth limb (although he has only used this ability once). As Venom, Gargan has gained the ability to shoot webbing and climb walls like Spider-Man, and can disguise himself as other people or blend in with his background. He is undetectable by Spider-Man's "spider-sense". His skill as a hand-to-hand combatant has increased due to the influence of the alien symbiote, which has superior instincts and fighting experience. The costume can also heal grave injuries suffered by the host with incredible speed. Mac (as Venom) has claws on his fingers which can be used as weapons to slash his foes. He can also create tendrils to incapacitate his enemies. When injured or enraged, Venom now has the ability to increase its mass and physical strength in order to meet whatever threat it is facing with equal force, an ability inconsistently hinted in the past, such as when Venom battled the Juggernaut. During these times it is not clear that Gargan has any control over the symbiote, for had it not been for the technology restraining Venom, he would have eaten Jack Flag. Also, during a battle with the Steel Spider, Gargan attacks innocent bystanders. As Spider-Man A special "medication" provided by Norman Osborn allowed Venom to assume a smaller, more human-looking form similar to when Spider-Man had control of the symbiote. From this form, he is able to switch back to his larger, more feral form whenever he pleases. As Spider-Man, Mac seems to be even more agile than when he was as Venom. He also still has all of Venom's powers, minus the claws, tongue, and teeth, which he can regrow at will. However, his "medication" has also been shown to decrease his will to fight, making him more sympathetic. Return as Scorpion After Smythe breaks him out of the Raft, Gargan is fitted with a new Scorpion suit. The suit is larger than its predecessor, and cybernetically wired into Gargan, making him a cyborg. It is equipped with a more powerful tail, mechanical pincers, and is bulletproof. Smythe also altered Gargan's biology, giving him a "scorpion sense" to match Spider-Man's spider-sense. The suit is also very tough, allowing Gargan to withstand a fall from a space shuttle. The armor leaves Mac's jaw unprotected, which Dr. Octopus (in Spider-Man's body) exploited to punched his jaw clean off. Other versions Exiles In one of the many realities visited by the Exiles, Mac Gargan is one of the many superhumans that form the Heroes for Hire, and is part of the Avengers Package, which also includes the Black Widow and the Black Knight. After being hired to protect Tokyo from Moses Magnum and Namorita, Scorpion is killed by the murderous, teenage counterpart of Magik.Exiles #26-27 Ultimate Marvel The Ultimate Marvel incarnation of Scorpion debuted in Ultimate Comics Spider-Man vol 3. #6. This one is Maximus Gargan, a tattoed, Mexican mob boss that worked with the Prowler (Aaron Davis).Ultimate Comics: Spider-Man Vol. 2 #6 He is shown to have very resistant skin, but may have other powers as well. Once he arrived at New York, Gargan set his sights on becoming the new "Kingpin of New York", but was stopped by the efforts of an un-easy alliance of Prowler and the second Spider-Man. Ultimate Comics: Spider-Man #10 JLA/Avengers In the last issue of JLA/Avengers, Scorpion is among the enthralled villains defending Krona's stronghold, and is defeated by Sandman.JLA/Avengers #4 Marvel Zombies A zombified Scorpion appears in Marvel Zombies: Dead Days and Marvel Zombies 3. He is a member of the Kingpin's undead alliance. As such, he searches New York and the surrounding areas for food of any kind. He is on friendly terms with the zombie Diablo. He is eventually killed by Machine Man.Marvel Zombies #3 (2008) Spider-Man: Reign Gargan appears as the Scorpion (in a highly advanced costume) in Spider-Man: Reign as a member of the Sinner Six. He dies when he is punted from an Empire State Building window by Spider-Man.Spider-Man: Reign #1-4 In other media Television * Scorpion appears in Spider-Man, voiced by Carl Banas. He is introduced in the episode "Never Step on a Scorpion" in which his creation is shown. It is revealed that his villainy is apparently due to the experiment making his evil nature increase. He returns in the episode "Sting of the Scorpion" where he breaks out of prison to wreak revenge on J. Jonah Jameson by kidnapping him. Scorpion accidentally takes a formula which makes him grow to 20 feet tall while breaking into Stillwell's home and trying to find the formula that gave him his superhuman strength, but Spider-Man gives him the antidote and he is jailed again. * Scorpion appears in the Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends episode "Attack of the Arachnoid". He was thwarted by the Spider-Friends at the beginning of the episode. When Spider-Man ends up in jail for Zolton's actions to frame the real Spider-Man, Scorpion took this opportunity to deliver payback to Spider-Man only to be defeated. * Scorpion appears in Spider-Man: The Animated Series, voiced initially by Martin Landau (until his Academy Award win and subsequent lack of availability) and later by Richard Moll. In his debut episode "The Sting of the Scorpion", Mac Gargan is a neurotic, plump, and balding private eye working for J. Jonah Jameson. In an attempt to discover Spider-Man's real identity, Jameson convinces Gargan to be transformed into a capable superhero by Dr. Stillwell using the Neogenic Recombinator. As Scorpion, he is able to defeat Spider-Man by pulling a water tower onto him, but before he can unmask the wall-crawler, Gargan is overcome with pain as he undergoes further uncontrolled mutations that give him green skin, yellow eyes, and talon-like fingers which also drives him insane. Believing more radiation may stop his transformation and return him to normal, he attempts to gain access to a nuclear reactor but is found and defeated by Spider-Man, resulting in Scorpion being sent to jail. Scorpion reappears as a member of the Kingpin's Insidious Six, a supervillain team created to kill Spider-Man though he is again defeated by Spider-Man. Desperate to find a cure to his condition, Scorpion kidnaps Dr. Stillwell but Stillwell destroys the Neogenic Recombinator to prevent the creation of other beings like Scorpion. After meeting the Vulture, Scorpion kidnaps him from an exploding building and holds him hostage, believing him to be smart enough to undo the Scorpion transformation. Eventually, Alistair Smythe, requiring Scorpion's genetic code to further his own experiments, holds Black Cat hostage to coerce Spider-Man into bringing Scorpion to him. Scorpion eventually manages to escape Smythe's clutches due to the Vulture attacking and attempts to stay away from crime for the sake of his fiancée. Scorpion's final appearance is again as a member of the Insidious Six who attempt to locate the Red Skull's doomsday device for Kingpin. At the end of the episode, he is shown to have escaped the police. * In The Spectacular Spider-Man episode "Final Curtain", Norman Osborn is heard thanking Mac Gargan on the phone for investigating Donald Menken's address. Scorpion was originally set to appear had the series been renewed for another season. Ask Greg (Weisman): March 24, 2009Pepose, David. "ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN: The Animated Series, Disney XD 2011". Newsarama. April 13, 2010. Video games * Scorpion is the third boss of the Game Boy game The Amazing Spider-Man. * Scorpion appears in the Game Boy Color video game Spider-Man 2: The Sinister Six as a member of the Sinister Six. * Mac Gargan appeared twice in the arcade game Spider-Man: The Video Game. * Scorpion appears as a boss in both the Super Nintendo Entertainment System and Sega Genesis games based on the animated series. * Scorpion was a boss in the Japanese only Super Nintendo game Spider-Man: Lethal Foes. * Mac Gargan also appears in the Neversoft Spider-Man, voiced by Daran Norris. He is shown in his short lived 1998 costume and appears as the first boss. Here, he is hunting down Daily Bugle Editor J. Jonah Jameson because he blames him for his becoming the Scorpion. However, Spider-Man eventually defeats Scorpion at the Daily Bugle. This version of Scorpion says that he can't remove his armor suit, and Jameson confirms it. * Scorpion appears in the 2002 multiple platform Spider-Man game, voiced by Mike McColl. Scorpion makes an appearance in two of the levels. He wears his short-lived blue and green armored suit from 1998 Spider-Man comics. In the game, Mac Gargan was the test subject for the Scorpion project, as a prototype to create super soldiers. In the project, he was given Scorpion-like powers and a mechanical tail stuck to his spine and he escaped from the labs. After Gargan escapes from the labs, he donned a cyberconic scorpion suit. Later on, Mendel Stromm tells Norman Osborn that now two individuals with arachnid DNA are at large in Manhattan, and Osborn orders the capture of both with spider-shaped robots. The robots pursue Scorpion through the sewers. Peter goes down to the subways to take pictures of his battle site with Shocker, when he runs into Scorpion. As it is revealed, Scorpion has an intense fear of spiders. He encounters Spider-Man who saves him from the spiders. Spider-Man and Scorpion afterwards have an intense battle. Spider-Man wins the battle and Scorpion flees. * Scorpion appears as a boss in the Game Boy Advance game Spider-Man: Mysterio's Menace. * Mac Gargan's Scorpion persona appears in Marvel: Ultimate Alliance, voiced by Beau Weaver. Scorpion is one of the many supervillains that Doctor Doom sends to take over the Helicarrier, but is easily defeated by Captain America, Spider-Man, Thor and Wolverine. He later returns during the heroes' trip to Asgard. He is shown guarding Tyr along with Lizard, but both are eventually defeated. Scorpion has a special dialogue with Spider-Man during the Asgard mission. He is the only villain to change his costume, as during the Helicarrier mission his costume his green and during the Asgard mission his costume is blue and green like the one he wore in the late 90's. A simulation disk has Spider-Man protecting Dum Dum Dugan from Scorpion. During the simulation disk, he makes a reference to J. Jonah Jameson being partially responsible for his creation. Gargan's Venom design is also an alternate costume for Venom (Eddie Brock) from the villain pack. * Scorpion appears as one of the villains in the Spider-Man 3 video game, voiced by Dee Bradley Baker. In it, his appearance is like the costume worn at the time that Mattie Franklin was posing as Spider-Man, referred to by Chris Archer to be similar to what he would look like should he have been in a movie. This incarnation of Scorpion is portrayed as a tortured victim rather than a villain, being used as an apparent 'bounty hunter' by cybernetics corporation MechaBioCon to break the Rhino out of an armored van on his way to prison, and occasionally subjected to mind control to make him cooperate (although his handlers note that his work is better when he is in control of his mind). Although he is briefly used to attack Spider-Man when the wall-crawler arrives to rescue him (having seen Scorpion in action and subsequently making contact with Doctor Andrews, a member of the team that gave Gargan his implants who appears to have feelings for him), Spider-Man is able to 'trick' him into destroying the device that is controlling him, subsequently working with Scorpion to attack MechaBioCon and defeat Rhino. After Rhino is defeated, Scorpion goes after Dr. Stillwell and tries to kill her only for Spider-Man and Dr. Andrews to invervene. Scorpion escapes as Spider-Man leaves Dr. Stillwell for the police. * Scorpion appears in Spider-Man: Friend or Foe, voiced by Fred Tatasciore. He is one of several enemies under Mysterio's mind control. Spider-Man encounters Scorpion in a lava-filled area within the Sea Caves on Tangaroa Island. After he is freed from the Control Amulet, Scorpion joins up with Spider-Man. * Mac Gargan appears in Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2, voiced by Walter Bernet (Venom) and Jim Cummings (Scorpion). Venom appears as a playable character (with Ultimate Eddie Brock's Venom form as an alternate appearance) and can be on either the pro-registration side or anti-registration side. In the Geffen-Meyer Chemicals cutscenes, he is present with the Thunderbolts. In the second cutscene there, Venom, Bullseye, Green Goblin and Lady Deathstrike end up attacking S.H.I.E.L.D. agents and setting up bombs when the Control Nanites end up taking a mind of their own. In the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions, the heroes end up fighting Venom and Green Goblin while Nick Fury LMD tries to disarm some of the bombs. In the cutscene depicted at Prison 42, Venom ends up attacking Nanite Control Officer Swanson and the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents with him while the other nanite-controlled supervillains attack both sides. When in Wakanda following a transmission from a nanite-controlled Fury, Green Goblin and Venom attack the heroes in Black Panther's palace. After being defeated and cured, Venom and Green Goblin are unlocked. In the PSP, Wii, and PS2 versions, the players fight Venom in Prison 42 after the cutscene there. Scorpion appears as a boss in the game's Wii, PS2, and PSP versions. Scorpion is among the supervillains taken over by the Fold. Scorpion and Green Goblin fights the heroes in Prison 42. * Scorpion appears in The Amazing Spider-Man video game (based on the 2012 The Amazing Spider-Man film reboot). This version is a scorpion-human hybrid, it states that he along with others were a result of OsCorp using Dr. Curt Conners's cross-species research to make super-humans, led by Alistaire Smythe. It is also stated that Oscorp physicist Otto Octavius made Scorpion who he was including a mix of a "black goo", and calls him MAC ('M'y 'A'stonishing 'C'reation). He goes berserk when he senses Peter Parker on a tour with Gwen Stacy. He stings Smythe, and escapes Oscorp, along with the other cross-species (Iguana, Rhino, Vermin and game exclusive Nattie). He fights Spider-Man when he returns to Oscorp, and Spider-Man defeats him again at a construction site before taken in by police. * Venom appears in Marvel: Avengers Alliance. He is featured in the 11th Spec-Ops Missions. In the 12th Spec-Ops mission, Venom is a member of Dell Rusk's Dark Avengers. References External links * Mac Gargan at Marvel.com * Mac Gargan at Spiderfan.org Category:Characters created by Stan Lee Category:Characters created by Steve Ditko Category:Comics characters introduced in 1964 Category:Fictional assassins Category:Fictional cannibals Category:Fictional characters from New York City Category:Fictional cyborgs Category:Fictional mercenaries Category:Fictional private investigators Category:Marvel Comics characters who can move at superhuman speeds Category:Marvel Comics characters with superhuman strength Category:Marvel Comics mutates